“Education is typically the biggest intervention that we make,” said STHS Nurse Practitioner Jason Green, who has been spearheading the program with nurse Daley Harrington and Post-Acute Navigator Anna Thomas. “Honestly, if people are well-educated on their dietary changes, their lifestyle modifications, we can get ahead of congestive heart failure exacerbations before they even happen.
“We may not have to add medications. We may not have to change a thing. If we can get in there early and effectively change the habits they have, we can avoid an exacerbation and eventually avoid a hospitalization, which is good for everybody.”
For Mrs. Bahn that extra layer of support has been invaluable.
“I might be 81, but I want to be 50,” she said. “I want to be able to do all the things I could.”
That includes walking Minnie, her mystery breed attention hound, and getting back to eschewing the elevator in favor of the stairs to the third-floor Mandeville condo she shares with husband Walter.
To get to that point, the Bahns have been educating themselves on such things as ways to cut the sodium in her diet, something they’ve found help with on YouTube and various Facebook groups, as well as the role sleep habits play in congestive heart failure.
Mrs. Bahn acknowledges she still has headway to make, but there’s no question she’s already come a long way.
“Now, I’m 200% better,” she said. “Probably 300%.”
That’s music to Green’s ears.
“Congestive heart failure is scary, it’s life-changing, it’s a big diagnosis that carries a lot of weight,” he said. “But it’s not the end of the world. We can treat it. Especially at St. Tammany, with this new program, we have the capability to work with your current care team, we have the capability to bring care into your home, and we have the capability to really change the outcome of your care journey.”